2022
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Béziers, Pays d'Oc
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| Dry red - medium/full-bodied |
90% Grenache, 10% Mourvedre - aged in steel vats
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13.5%
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Roasted red meats, game, cheeses.
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Improves for 2 or 3 days
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2024 to 2028 and beyond
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Grenache grown on Villafranchien soil (a mix of red clay and smooth pebbles), plus a little Mourvedre, grown on a 40-metre-deep bed of sea sediment and alluvial deposits in Corneilhan, just north of Béziers. Yields are very low, with just 20 hl/ha for the Grenache and a miniscule 10 hl/ha for the Mourvedre. In many ways, this is the most elegant of Brigitte Chevalier's wines - what it lacks in Faugères typicity/terroir, it certainly makes up for it in it's delightfully soft, sweet-sour, slightly saline fruit aromas and flavours. Initially, this seems lighter in style than previous vintages, with a bright, medium-red robe leading to a narrow watery rim, with red berry and cherry fruit aromas, hints of summer flowers and garrigue herbs. The palate is medium bodied, again with light, fresh strawberry and cherry fruit flavours, gentle tannins and cherry skin acidity, leading to a cool, minty finish. At the time of tasting (July 2023) this extremely youthful wine has only been in bottle for a couple of months, so it needs time to put on some weight. Indeed, it isn't until a full 2 days later that the aromas and flavours start to fill out and become more complex - still quite ethereal and relatively light, but with the fruit turning a little darker and more mouth-filling, and showing more grip on the mid-palate. The floral nuances are still there, and we also have hints of forest floor and white pepper. With another 6 to 12 months in bottle, this will really begin to sing. |
